Amundi Asia Pacific Market Monthly Commentary - April 2022

Thursday 19 May 2022

Market Commentary

Markets remained under pressure in April as macro headwinds picked up speed. US Treasury yields maintained their upward momentum as the Fed officials increasingly voiced their commitment to bring down inflation through front-loaded rate hikes. The dollar strengthened significantly over the month, putting EM Asian currencies at a disadvantage.

In EM Asia, CPI inflation continued to drive higher, impacted by the geopolitical conflict in Europe and its impact on global commodity prices. With the exception of China, inflation is on a clear uptrend in the majority of countries and above central banks’ target range. While reopening optimism remained a prominent theme within Southeast Asia, China demonstrated little inclination to deviate from its zero-COVID policy.

Against this backdrop, MSCI Asia ex Japan Index was down -5.23% in April (in USD terms, net dividends excluded), outperforming the MSCI World Index which returned -8.43% (in USD terms, net dividends excluded). Taiwan was the major laggard in the region while Indonesia continued to deliver a robust growth.


Document

Other news